Letter: Government serves as example for society's violence

Posted:
01/10/2013 01:00:00 AM MST

On Dec. 27, I went to the discussion Barbara Kelly organized at the Eisenhower Library to explore ideas to "mitigate the possibility of a repeat performance anywhere" of the violence that took place in Newtown, Conn. Barb was highly organized and had a path she requested we follow.

Everyone seemed ready to have an honest, open, no-holds barred, productive discussion, and at the same time honoring everyone's point of view and to refrain from lecturing. Instead of exploring tangible, succinct, specific ideas to reduce the frequency of incidents like Newtown; we drifted toward a generalized, fuzzy, kumbaya moment.

At the conclusion of the meeting we were reviewing how role models set the values and expectations our society has. We checked off how parents, movies, TV, video games, athletes and celebrities serve as roles models. We noted how evil conduct, that has no consequence or cost, might be emulated. I tried to include a specific, real world example I think illustrates why these events occur. I raised the example of how President Obama ordered the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Barb did not want us to explore the evil the president set into motion and the role model it gives. We monitored bin Laden for months. We seduced a doctor to betray his medical ethics and feign a humanitarian mission to confirm DNA clues. Our operators leisurely rehearsed the mission. We desecrated the body. We killed other unarmed people. The president lied about the event. Our country rejoiced in this evil and no one was allowed to disagree. The killers are feted as heroes. A book and movie celebrate the killing.

This was real life, not a movie or fantasy game. This is the presentation of true American morals. U.S. drones repeatedly hit (kill) targets (human beings) with minimal collateral damage (other human beings). "Blacks ops" are glorified for their successes. Nowhere is compassion or mere humanity shown for the victims.

These messages are being sent to everyone and are acted on by the 1 percent of 1 percent of 1 percent of society that commits the evils of Newtown, Aurora and Virginia Tech. Restraint is for the timid and weak. The strong define their own morality.

The U.S. is the most powerful country on earth, yet we ignore our claimed values and morality anytime they are inconvenient. When our media is outraged about people killed in Connecticut, but is blasé about our soldiers killing people and urinating on the bodies, even the most disconnected of us can see how phony we are. If the powerful cannot show self-restraint and morality, why should the weak act any differently? In this context, I find it understandable how powerless, unhappy, angry and frequently mentally ill people slaughter their fellow citizens. If we cannot or will not hear the messages our society is sending, how can we take steps to change the situation?

Bruce Baker,

Broomfield

The Broomfield Enterprise welcomes letters from readers on matters of public interest or controversy. Letters to the editor must be signed and include the author's address and phone number. Letters should be a maximum of 500 words. Each writer is limited to one letter every 30 days. The Enterprise reserves the right to edit letters for length, clarity or taste. Letters that are e-mailed are processed more quickly, and letters will appear based on the order in which they were received. Thank-you notes will be published only if they are deemed to have communitywide interest. E-mail letters to baxterj@broomfieldenterprise.com or mail letters to 3400 Industrial Lane, Suite 2, Broomfield 80020.

Article Comments

We reserve the right to remove any comment that violates our ground rules, is spammy, NSFW, defamatory, rude, reckless to the community, etc.

We expect everyone to be respectful of other commenters. It's fine to have differences of opinion, but there's no need to act like a jerk.

Use your own words (don't copy and paste from elsewhere), be honest and don't pretend to be someone (or something) you're not.

Our commenting section is self-policing, so if you see a comment that violates our ground rules, flag it (mouse over to the far right of the commenter's name until you see the flag symbol and click that), then we'll review it.

Knights claim first team title behind victories from Schacht and WuDENVER — As Fairview athletic director Terrin Kelly took in the scene Saturday afternoon at Gates Tennis Center, he turned to principal Don Stensrud and mentioned they were going to have to do some rearranging in the school's trophy case. Full Story

The Boulder alt-country band gives its EPs names such as Death and Resurrection, and its songs bear the mark of hard truths and sin. But the punk energy behind the playing, and the sense that it's all in good fun, make it OK to dance to a song like "Death." Full Story